Shameful Cuts to Elderly Services

The Grey Power Constitution states the purpose
of Grey Power is to “advance, support and protect the
welfare and wellbeing of the over 50 age group and to oppose
all discrimination and disadvantageous legislation affecting
the rights security and dignity of the elderly”

Those of
you who read political party material before the election
would have thought that politicians felt the same way.

Well it turns out they don’t. They are quite prepared to
neglect the most vulnerable in our society as they have done
these last 16 years. Thus it came as no surprise that we
all learned recently that the Government is going to cut the
care of those in geriatric hospitals.

Let me give you the
whole history.

In 2000 the Auditing company
Price-WaterHouse Cooper were commissioned to do a review of
health care services to the elderly. They found that the
whole sector was grossly underfunded—particularly rest homes
by an alarming 15%.

Prior to the 1999 Election the Labour
Party said that, if elected, they would ensure that: “ a
comprehensive range of services are available in the public
health system…”.

That pledge meant, surely, that they
would adequately fund the health concerns of the elderly.

Instead the present government is doing what they accuse
the National party of doing—they ignored the real material
in the report and selectively used it to show that they did
not need to improve the funding of elderly heath services.

Price Waterhouse Cooper said that residential health care
services to the elderly were seriously underfunded. In
response the Government recently announced that they would
increase the spending for rest homes by a paltry $8million.
But to pay for it they are taking $8million from so-called
‘geriatric care’. In short rob Peter to pay Paul.

That
is an alarming development. Government will reduce by $ 8
million spending on hospitals for long term patients
suffering from dementia, Alzheimer’s and other mental health
problems for the elderly. They will not defend those who
cannot defend themselves.

So on 1 December this year the
amount paid to those hospitals will be cut, both in actual
terms, and in inflation adjusted terms. Many of those
hospitals are charitable trusts, and community owned. They
are already under-funded with services stretched to breaking
point.

What this means is that thousands of elderly
patients who require intensive 24 hour specialised care will
have nowhere to go. In one example we have been told that 8
such hospitals in Whangarei, with 136 patients will have to
close. These hospitals themselves have said that—they simply
cannot afford to continue.

That is 136 patients with
advanced dementia and serious health problems will have to
either go on to the streets, live with their families, when
for most that would be impossible, or most likely, be moved
to Auckland.

Currently there are just under 7000 such
patients in New Zealand hospitals. You will recall that
when I was the Treasurer I removed income and asset testing,
which was sadly reinstated under the Shipley government.

Later this year many will face eviction from their
residential care. Most of those are in small residential
facilities. The government’s policy is to increase the size
of patient numbers per hospital by 50%-- in other words cram
them in. They want to get rid of small hospitals in favour
of moving those patients into large one-size-fits-all
hospitals where they will not get the same care.

Alas we
are going to see develop two classes of geriatric care—one
for the haves and another one for the have-nots. That is
unacceptable and all elderly people who require care should
be entitled to the best possible care that we can provide
them. When we were a good nation we all believed
that.

Elderly health care has been given $50million to
account for inflation-- a zero increase in real terms; the
artists have been given $100million.

And Maori Television
is to be given $55 million per annum of new funding.

That’s where the priorities of this government lie—they
are quite prepared to have elderly patients with dementia
being evicted from their hospitals, but they can’t have the
pretentious-bearded-bright-young-things in Wellington doing
without their art work at Te Papa.

We in New Zealand
First implore you in Grey Power to do something for these
old people who obviously can’t come to your meetings.
Besiege Dr Cullen, Miss Clark and Annette King and stop this
outrage.

Remember what they promised in opposition even
though it was Helen Clark who, as Minister for Health,
closed 29 hospitals—more than any other Minister of Health
in New Zealand’s history.

And today Annette King’s record,
after 18 months in the job, is looking decidedly shaky with
District Health Board after District Health Board going into
deficit. This year those deficits will total more than $300
million. Compound those deficits next year and we already
have a crisis on our hands.

And the elderly are not faring
well on many other fronts. To begin with electricity prices
are going through the roof. Those price increases are a
form of tax.

Why are they taxes? Because the government
could do something about those increases, but chooses not
to, whilst at the same time they are quite prepared to enjoy
the windfall of the increase in tax on those electricity
price increases.

Why do they more adversely affect the
elderly? Because retired people have less disposable income
than those who are working and often are more reliant on
electricity for their standard of living. They are the ones
who can least afford it.

It seems a classic case of
win-win for the Government, and lose-lose for the home owner
and business - paying more for their energy and as a
consequence, higher taxes also.

The Government could have
stopped electricity price increases long ago, lowered the
cost of living and still collect revenue—but their political
priorities lie elsewhere. In short they won’t act to
regulate energy price gouging because that would be seen to
be “anti-business”, in the same way as they wouldn’t inquire
into bank charge increases because, even though the banks
are all foreign owned and fleecing their New Zealand
clients, they are scared of being accused of being
“anti-business”.

There appears to be no doubt that energy
and banking companies are in collusion - merely taking turns
at being the bad guys in leading the charge to put up
prices. The Government has the responsibility to act in the
best interests of everyone and not permit New Zealanders to
be ripped off by energy companies and banks.

The elderly,
the retired and those who can least afford it are literally
being left out in the cold with stretched budgets because of
this government’s inaction. New Zealand First believes
that there should be action taken immediately to regulate
electricity prices, offer incentives for domestic customers
to save electricity and then begin a formal inquiry into the
industry.

It is no use the Minister, and the National
Party, arguing for a Conference of all the parties involved
or a Review for that matter. Any Review will end up on his
desk. We face a serious electricity shortage.

Yet this
morning the Minister said that there might be, just may be
an electricity crisis. Big power users are shutting down
their plants at critical times; some charges have increased
by over 1000% and action is needed urgently. The Minister
should use his powers.

The Minister has done little other
than criticising the former minister over the past 20
months. That criticism is justified but what has he
accomplished?

The tactic that the Minister has taken of
blaming everything on Max Bradford is wearing thin. In the
meantime the water levels continue to drop, prices continue
to rise and time is running out.

Where is the leadership
that you were all promised?

The entire electricity
industry is in turmoil; companies will now not take on new
customers because they will actually lose money for doing
so, whilst retailers are disposing of their customer base
and leaving the industry.

The result of this inaction
will be exorbitant costs to business and more poverty
amongst the elderly and the less well off in one of the most
developed energy rich countries in the world.

And whilst
we are at it why as Grey Power been barred from attending
today’s so-called top level meeting on the electricity
crisis when retirement homes are facing over 100% increases
in their power bills? If this state of affairs continues
electricity for many will become a luxury item.

This
Minister’s only apparent action has been to appoint David
Caygill firstly to the Electricity Review Team and now to
the Governance Board. Mr Caygill has a long history of not
working in the interests of the public. Remember it was he
as Minister of Finance who, in 1990, announced a Budget with
an $89 million surplus when it in fact was a $3.2 billion
deficit and it was he who first sold part of the BNZ and
then all of Telecom.

Those of you who voted Labour last
time please remember that there is a huge difference between
what they said they would do and what they have actually
achieved.

This week in Parliament every party but two
voted for 65% of the average working wage being the
permanent super payment to the elderly. New Zealand First
opposed it because we have always believed that a sound
economy could afford 72.5% of the average wage for the
retired. The ACT Party opposed it because they want the
super age increased and super payments reduced even
more.

We do have more politically expedient spending in
government today but after all the promises we have missed a
golden opportunity and condemned ourselves to a destiny of
internal division and a continued slide down the
international scale.

Ladies and Gentlemen, for the record
when New Zealand First had the power to do something for you
we introduced free influenza injections for the retired and
the sick, we refused, even though there was an Asian crisis
dramatically affecting our economy to reduce super payments
to the elderly, we removed income and asset testing for
those in geriatric care, we ran the lowest inflation regime
for 26 years, we abolished the surtax which every other
party had supported, we opened mental health care and
cardiac care facilities and dramatically increased health
spending – to gain 32,000 more operations per annum and
provide free medical care for children under 6.

And we
refused to sell any state asset.

And one more thing – we
stood for one country and one law for everybody. We would
not back then, nor will we now, promote race preferential
legislation – the path down which National and Labour again
are, taking this country.

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